WW2 Fighter
The unconventional Ryan FR Fireball was the only fighter in operational service to be powered by both piston and jet engines: a true blend of old and new technologies. The fireball was also the first carrier aircraft designed with a laminar-flow airfoil and to have a fully flush-riveted exterior and metal skinned moveable control surfaces. A radial engine was fitted in the nose while a turbojet was fitted in the rear fuselage. In flight, it was able to fly with either engine or with both at the same time. The Fireball made headlines when it became the first US aircraft to land under jet power on an aircraft carrier, the USS Wake Island. The end of the war made the US Navy lose interest with the result being that most contracts were cancelled and only one squadron flew until 1947 without ever seeing combat. The last surviving aircraft example of this aircraft of only 71 built is on public display at the Planes of Fame Air Museum in Chino, CA.
Credit Dark Skies
